List,
Glad to hear some comments regarding school choice in Minneapolis.
Given that there is so much bad PR out there and so much dismissive word-of-mouth regarding Minneapolis Public Schools, I'm glad to say that the past 2 months have been incredibly, and positively, eye-opening for my husband and me.
We have a soon-to-be 5 year old and have decided on public school for his education. My husband went to privates school for his education; I am the result of public school (Mpls - John Burroughs Elementary, and Orono Jr. and Sr. High School). We really wanted public school to be an option for our son.
After attending the Mpls School Fair earlier in January and visiting Kenwood, Jefferson, Emerson, the downtown IDDS, Burroughs, Whittier, and the Lyndale schools, and interviewing scores of neighbors and friends, all I can say is WOW! The quality IS evident (at least in the marketing and presentation) at these schools, the kids seem enthusiastic, the parent involvement is high, the buildings are clean, well-lighted places, test scores are, of course, all over the map but improving (so it seems), and there is a range of teaching styles and settings and start times available to meet the needs of students and their families. More importantly for us, we think there is a path in there, somewhere, that will fit the needs of our son's learning style and our family's scheduling needs.
I want to say emphatically that we have seen variety and diversity and opportunity in the Mpls schools - all attributes we have been looking for.
My son also attended the mandatory "pre-school screening" this morning at the Phillips school. It was a very thorough process whereby the trained school nurses/counselors tested his hearing and sight, weighed him and measured his height, talked about lead-poisoning and other environmental hazards of city living, and then ran through a variety of cognitive and developmental screens to determine if Tucker was actually ready to meet the demands of kindergarten. This is an essential tool that the Mpls schools use, I think, very effectively to let staff and parents know if the kids will be ready for school when the year begins. I'm glad the district requires it.
Public school isn't for everyone, but my recent experience tells me that it could be for a lot of kids here in Mpls. I wish all-day kindergarten were an option (read: fully funded) for every student. I wish class sizes could remain small in all grades. I wish the state/feds had more money for ALL our schools. But given the challenges Mpls public schools face, I have been spirited by what I have seen, and again, I'm humbled by the commitment and enthusiasm demonstrated by the teachers and principals and parents in the Mpls. schools. Hooray!
Now, back to researching the schools,
Tracy Nordstrom, East Calhoun mom and cheerleader for public schools
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